The bad news: the Detroit Lions have lost five of their last six games, and have dropped again in Dave Birkett's NFL power rankings. The good news: the Lions have an (on paper) easy schedule to close out the season.(Photo: Kirthmon F. Dozier, Detroit Free Press)

They’re realists, most of them. They’ve been around this game long enough to know the deal.

At 4-8, the Detroit Lions aren’t making the playoffs this year, and with this season down to its final four games, there’s not much they can do to change that.

Sure, Glover Quin noted the mathematics of it this week, that the Lions are still technically alive in the playoff hunt. But Quin’s chances of making the postseason this year are .002 percent, according to MakeNFLPlayoffs.com, which is roughly the same as you winning the lotto.

“It could be a race to eight,” Quin said.

It could, and I could be Calvin Klein’s next underwear model.

The Lions play another flailing team that fell out of relevance long ago Sunday in the Arizona Cardinals in a game that quite frankly will be tough to watch.

The Cardinals are last in the NFL in scoring and passing offense. They start three rookies and two guys who sound like they should be club promoters on the offensive line. (Will Holden and Oday Aboushi present …) And they just put their leading receiver on injured reserve.

The Lions haven’t been much better on offense since trading Golden Tate to the Philadelphia Eagles and losing Marvin Jones and Kerryon Johnson to injury. They’ve lost five of their last six games and have topped 20 points just once since Oct. 28.

Maybe Quin was right. Maybe it is a race to eight, as in the first team to eight points wins.

The Detroit Lions take the field before the game against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, December 2, 2018 at Ford Field in Detroit.(Photo: Kirthmon F. Dozier, Detroit Free Press)

“It’s definitely not what I’d say (is) a situation we want to be in, but it’s about making the best of it right now and really trying to win out, become 4-0 in December and try and get it rolling for next year,” tight end Michael Roberts said. “We have a lot to play for this year, so I don’t want that comment to be misconstrued as I’m looking forward to next year. It’s just continue to build and build and build.”

More important than where the Lions are at this point of the season is how they got here. And as is usually the case there’s plenty of blame to go around.

Matt Patricia had a steep learning curve as a first-year head coach that he did not do a good job of navigating. The locker room, perhaps too coddled by the previous regime, was slow to buy in to Patricia’s ways. And Bob Quinn put together (and now must deconstruct) a roster that doesn’t stack up well with some of its NFL peers.

The Pro Bowl not the best judge of NFL talent, or a true evaluation of how well a player is playing. But it’s telling that, with less than a week left in fan voting, the Lions don’t have a single player in the top 10 at their position.

Worse, outside of kicker, where Matt Prater has been his usual steady self (but has made just 4 of 7 kicks of 40-plus yards), it’s hard to argue that any Lion even deserves to be in the top 10.

Maybe Damon Harrison, who leads all interior defensive linemen with 64 tackles, but he was an October trade addition who’s played just six games as a Lion.

Darius Slay, who made his first Pro Bowl last year, hasn’t been the same lock-down corner he was in the past. T.J. Lang, who joined Slay in Orlando in January, has missed half the year with injury. Matthew Stafford? Turnover-prone. Ziggy Ansah? Hurt. Quin? Might be down to his final four games in Detroit.

The Lions’ best players haven’t played like it this year, and that’s a big reason why this team is in the predicament it’s in.

The roster isn’t barren. Harrison and fellow defensive tackles A’Shawn Robinson and Da’Shawn Hand have been a revelation up front as the Lions have significantly improved their run defense over the last month. Devon Kennard has been the team’s best edge rusher. And young offensive stars Johnson and Kenny Golladay have bright futures ahead.

But Quinn is in for a busy offseason as he needs to find five or six new starters (right guard, tight end, slot receiver, right end and maybe safety and third cornerback) and hope that his quarterback regains his touch or the Lions will be in for an even longer 2019.

Roberts is right that this next month is about building, and one school of thought is that the best way to do that is for the Lions to pile up a few more losses and help their positioning in next April's draft.

In that regard, today’s game could be very meaningful, as both the Cardinals (3-9) and Lions are in line for top-five picks.

Sunday's loser could end up the real winner, though for players, even with realistic playoff hopes dashed, that's not something that matters.

“I can’t speak for everyone, but I would hope everyone’s playing to win, which is what we’re here and what we’re paid to do,” Roberts said. “So like I said, continue to try and build, win, become 4-0 in December and just take that momentum and just continue to use that cause this job isn’t easy.”

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The bad news: the Detroit Lions have lost five of their last six games, and have dropped again in Dave Birkett's NFL power rankings. The good news: the Lions have an (on paper) easy schedule to close out the season. Kirthmon F. Dozier, Detroit Free Press

11. Ravens (7-5) | Last game: Defeated the Falcons, 26-16 | Previous ranking: 12 | The buzz: John Harbaugh can attest that a good defense still goes a long way in the NFL. Scott Cunningham, Getty Images

13. Eagles (6-6) | Last game: Defeated Washington, 28-13 | Previous ranking: 16 | The buzz: No team has a tougher final four games – at the Cowboys and Rams, home vs. the Texans and at Washington – than the defending champs. Elsa, Getty Images

18. Panthers (6-6) | Last game: Lost to the Buccaneers, 24-17 | Previous ranking: 14 | The buzz: Ron Rivera dropped a bomb on his staff, but with two games left vs New Orleans, Carolina isn’t making the playoffs. David T. Foster III, TNS

20. Packers (4-7-1) | Last game: Lost to the Cardinals, 20-17 | Previous ranking: 19 | The buzz: Packers smart to get a jump start on the hiring cycle by firing Mike McCarthy – especially if they want a college coach like Lincoln Riley. Jeffrey Phelps, AP

23. Buccaneers (5-7) | Last game: Defeated the Panthers, 24-17 | Previous ranking: 26 | The buzz: If Bucs fall for Jameis Winston’s rope-a-dope down the stretch, they get what they deserve. David T. Foster III, TNS

24. Lions (4-8) | Last game: Lost to the Rams, 30-16 | Previous ranking: 22 | The buzz: Per OverTheCap.com, only the Broncos have an easier final four games than the Lions. Kirthmon F. Dozier, Detroit Free Press

28. Bills (4-8) | Last game: Lost to the Dolphins, 21-17 | Previous ranking: 27 | The buzz: Josh Allen has run for 234 yards the last two games; Lions have run for 213 in that span as a team. Jasen Vinlove, Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

31. 49ers (2-10) | Last game: Lost to the Seahawks, 43-16 | Previous ranking: 31 | The buzz: With four games left vs. playoff contenders, 49ers might as well be on the clock with the No. 1 pick. Joe Nicholson, Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports